mla citation for book review

MLA Citation Guide (9th Edition): Book Reviews

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On This Page: Book Reviews

Book review - no title, book review - title refers to book being reviewed, book review - title doesn't refer to book being reviewed, abbreviating months.

In your works cited list, abbreviate months as follows: 

January = Jan. February = Feb. March = Mar. April = Apr. May = May June = June July = July August = Aug. September = Sept. October = Oct. November = Nov. December = Dec.

Spell out months fully in the body of your paper. 

Note : For your Works Cited list, all citations should be double spaced and have a hanging indent.

A "hanging indent" means that each subsequent line after the first line of your citation should be indented by 0.5 inches.

Author's Last Name, First Name. Review of  Title of Book: Subtitle if Any , by Book Author's First Name Last Name.  Name of Journal , vol. Volume Number, no. Issue Number, Date of Publication, pp. First Page Number-Last Page Number.  Name of Database . https://doi.org/DOI Number if Given.

 Note : If the book review is from a source other than an article in the library's database, view the appropriate section on the MLA guide to determine how to cite the source after the name of the book's author.

Author's Last Name, First Name. "Title of Review." Name of Journal , vol. Volume Number, no. Issue Number, Date of Publication, pp. First Page Number-Last Page Number.  Name of Database . https://doi.org/DOI Number if Given.

 Note : If the book review is from a source other than an article in the library's database, view the appropriate section on the MLA guide to determine how to cite the source.

Author's Last Name, First Name. "Title of Review." Review of  Title of Book: Subtitle if Any,  by Book Author's First Name Last Name .   Name of Journal , vol. Volume Number, no. Issue Number, Date of Publication, pp. First Page Number-Last Page Number. Name of Database . https://doi.org/DOI Number if Given. 

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MLA Citation Guide (9th Edition): Book Reviews

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• Artificial Intelligence (AI)
• Books and eBooks
• Book Reviews
• Class Notes and Presentations
• Encyclopedias and Dictionaries
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• Works Cited List & Sample Paper
• Annotated Bibliography

On This Page

Book review - no title.

• Title Refers to Book being Reviewed
• Title Doesn't Refer to Book being Reviewed

Note : For your Works Cited list, all citations should be double spaced and have a hanging indent.

A "hanging indent" means that each subsequent line after the first line of your citation should be indented by 0.5 inches.

Author's Last Name, First Name. Review of Title of Book: Subtitle if Any , by Book Author's First Name Last Name. Name of Journal , vol. Volume Number, no. Issue Number, Date of Publication, pp. First Page Number-Last Page Number. Name of Database . doi: DOI Number if Given.

Note : If the book review is from a source other than an article in the library's database, view the appropriate section on the MLA guide to determine how to cite the source after the name of the book's author.

Khovanova, Tanya. Review of  Love and Math: The Heart of Hidden Reality , by Edward Frenkel.  The College Mathematics Journal , vol. 45, no. 3, May 2014, pp. 230-231. JSTOR . doi: www.jstor.org/stable/10.4169/college.math.j.45.3.230.

(Author's Last Name Page Number)

Example: (Khovanova 230)

Learn more: See the  MLA Handbook , pp. 28-29

Book Review - Title Refers to Book being Reviewed

Author's Last Name, First Name. "Title of Review." Name of Journal , vol. Volume Number, no. Issue Number, Date of Publication, pp. First Page Number-Last Page Number. Name of Database . doi: DOI Number if Given.

Note : If the book review is from a source other than an article in the library's database, view the appropriate section on the MLA guide to determine how to cite the source.

Grosholz, Emily R. "Book Review: Realizing Reason: A Narrative of Truth and Knowledge by Danielle Macbeth." Journal of Humanistic Mathematics , vol. 7, no. 1, Jan. 2017, pp. 263-275, Academic Search Complete . doi: 10.5642/jhummath.20170120.

Example: (Grosholz 264)

Book Review - Title Doesn't Refer to Book being Reviewed

Author's Last Name, First Name. "Title of Review." Review of Title of Book: Subtitle if Any by Book Author's First Name Last Name. Name of Journal , vol. Volume Number, no. Issue Number, Date of Publication, pp. First Page Number-Last Page Number. Name of Database . doi: DOI Number if Given. 

Rodriques, Elias. "Lonesome for our Home." Review of Barraccon: The Story of the Last "Black Cargo", by Zora Neale Hurston. Nation , vol. 306, no. 18, 18 June 2018, pp. 35-39. MAS Ultra - School Edition .

Example: (Rodriques 35)

MLA Handbook

Abbreviating Months

In your works cited list, abbreviate months as follows: 

January = Jan. February = Feb. March = Mar. April = Apr. May = May June = June July = July August = Aug. September = Sept. October = Oct. November = Nov. December = Dec.

Spell out months fully in the body of your paper. 

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Citation Help for MLA, 8th Edition: Book Review

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Month Abbreviations

According to p. 95 of the MLA Handbook  8th ed. Spell out months in the body of your paper and abbreviate as follows in your works cited list: January = Jan. February = Feb. March = Mar. April = Apr. May = May June = June July = July August = Aug. September = Sept. October = Oct. November = Nov. December = Dec.

Multiple Authors?

Example: McGill, Ivan, John Kurt Glenn, and Alice  Brockbank. The Action Learning Handbook: Powerful Techniques for Education . Rutledge Falmer, 2014.

Explanation: List the first author last name first followed by the first and middle names followed by a comma. All other authors are listed first name followed by the last name. Insert the word "and" and a comma before the last author. Note: If there are more than three authors, just list the first one followed by et al., which is Latin for and others . There is a period after al but not et. Example: Nelson, Karl, et al. Fish Is for Everyone . Penguin Press, 2016. 

Bell, Madison Smartt. "Are You My Mother?" Review of Let the Northern Lights Erase Your       Name , by Vendela Vida. The New York Times Book Review, 31 Dec. 2016, p. 10.

Explanation

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Cite Your Sources in MLA 9th: Book Reviews

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How to Cite Book Reviews

Book review without a title.

Review Author(s). Review of  Title of Book: Subtitle if Any , by Book Author's First Name Last Name.  Name of Journal , vol. Volume Number, no. Issue Number, Publication Date, pp. Page Numbers.  Name of Database , https://doi.org/DOI [if any].

Khovanova, Tanya. Review of  Love and Math: The Heart of Hidden Reality , by Edward Frenkel.  The College Mathematics Journal , vol. 45, no. 3, May 2014, pp. 230-231.  JSTOR , https://doi.org/10.4169/college.math.j.45.3.230.

Book Review With a Title

Review Author(s). "Title of Review with Book Title Italicized."  Name of Journal , vol. Volume Number, no. Issue Number, Publication Date, pp. Page Numbers.  Name of Database , https://doi.org/DOI [if any].

Grosholz, Emily R. "Book Review:  Realizing Reason: A Narrative of Truth and Knowledge  by Danielle Macbeth."  Journal of Humanistic Mathematics , vol. 7, no. 1, Jan. 2017, pp. 263-275.  Academic Search Complete , https://doi.org/10.5642/jhummath.20170120.

How to Format Author Names

• Works Cited List
• In-Text Citation

Last Name, First Name or Last Name, First Name Middle Name or Initial (if provided in source)

Name Examples:

Anzaldúa, Gloria Kendi, Ibram X. Wallace, David Foster

Citation Example:

Anzaldúa, Gloria.  Borderlands / La Frontera: The New Mestiza . 4th ed., Aunt Lute Books, 2012. 

Two Authors

Last Name, First Name, and First Name Last Name

Wykes, Maggie, and Barrie Gunter.  The Media and Body Image: If Looks Could Kill.  Sage, 2005.

Three or More Authors

First Author's Last Name, First Name, et al.

Chan, Sabrina S., et al.  Learning Our Names: Asian American Christians on Identity, Relationships, and Vocation.  InterVarsity Press, 2022.

Group or Corporate Author

If the group author is different from publisher.

If the group author and the publisher are different entities, list the Group Name as the author. 

Calgary Educational Partnership Foundation.  Employability Skills: Creating My Future . Nelson, 1996.

If the Group Author and Publisher Are the Same

If the group author and the publisher are the same, skip the author and list the title first. Then, list the group author only as the publisher.

Fair Housing—Fair Lending . Aspen Law & Business, 1985.

If a source has no author, skip the author and start with the title. Do not use "Anonymous" as the author name.

"How to Teach Yourself Guitar."  eHow,  Demand Media, www.ehow.com/how_5298173_teach-yourself-guitar.html. Accessed 24 June 2016.

(Last Name Page Number)

(Anzaldúa 30)

(First Author's Last Name and Second Author's Last Name Page Number)

(Wykes and Gunter 53)

(First Author's Last Name et al. Page Number)

(Chan et al. 97)

(Group Name Page Number)

(Calgary Educational Partnership Foundation 230)

If your full citation for a group author starts with the title rather than the group's name, follow the "No Author" in-text citation rules instead.

( Title of Longer Work  or "Title of Shorter Work" Page Number)

( Fair Housing  15)

("How to Teach")

Frequently Asked Questions

How do i format dates.

Dates in your Works Cited list should be formatted like this: Day Month Year. Month names should be abbreviated using the list below.  Example:  17 Oct. 2021.

For publication dates, include as much information as the source provides. This may be a full date, only the month and year, a season (such as Spring 2019), or just a publication year.

Month Abbreviations

In your Works Cited list, abbreviate months as follows:

January = Jan. February = Feb. March = Mar. April = Apr. May = May June = June July = July August = Aug. September = Sept. October = Oct. November = Nov. December = Dec.

Spell out months fully in the body of your paper.

What is a DOI?

Digital Object Identifiers, or DOIs, are unique numbers or hyperlinks assigned to some online resources, such as journal articles, to make them easier to find.

If a DOI is provided for a source, include it at the end of your citation after any page numbers. In your Works Cited list, you should always format a DOI as a URL beginning with "https://doi.org/" followed immediately by the DOI number.

Example:  For DOI "10.5642/jhummath.20170120," the URL version would be: https://doi.org/10.5642/jhummath.20170120

If no DOI is provided but a permalink or stable link is present, you can use that instead.

What if some information is missing?

If a source is missing information that you need for your Works Cited citation, you can skip that element and move on to the next element in the citation.

Examples: Some sources don't have an author; in this case, we skip the author and start our citation with the title. Most academic journals are published in volumes and issues, but some only have volumes; in this case, we list the volume number and skip the issue number. 

What if I don't know which source type I'm citing?

If you're not sure what type of source you're working with, don't worry! This is a very common challenge. Check out our page on Identifying Source Types .

What if I need to cite multiple sources by the same author?

Works Cited List:  To cite two or more works by the same author, give the name in the first entry only. For subsequent works by the same author, replace the author's name with three hyphens followed by a period (---.), which signifies that the name is the same as the preceding entry. Alphabetize works with the same author by title. 

In-Text Citations: To distinguish multiple works by the same author, add a comma followed by a shortened version of the title (usually the first 2-4 words) between the author name and the page number. Example: (Anzaldúa,  Borderlands / La Frontera  38). Alternately, you can mention the author and title in the sentence, and then only include the page number. 

For page numbers, should I use p. or pp.?

If you are citing a single page, use "p." If you are citing multiple pages, use "pp."

Example: If an article runs from page 10 to page 15, your citation should say "pp. 10-15" because it covers multiple pages. If it's a short article that only appears on page 11, your citation should say "p. 11".

More Information on MLA 9th

• Pierce Library's MLA 9th Quick Citation Guide Downloadable PDF with sample citations (including in-text) for different types of sources and a sample Works Cited page.
• MLA Style Center Tips for working in MLA Style, answers to common questions, and more.
• Purdue OWL MLA 9 Formatting & Style Guide Very thorough overview of MLA 9th with examples for how to construct both in-text and Works Cited entries.

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MLA Citation Guide (8th Edition): Book Reviews

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• Book Reviews
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• When Creating Digital Assignments
• Works Quoted in Another Source
• No author, no date etc
• In-Text Citation
• Sample Paper
• Annotated Bibliography

On This Page: Book Reviews

Book review - no title, book review - title refers to book being reviewed, book review - title doesn't refer to book being reviewed, abbreviating months.

In your Works Cited list, abbreviate months as follows: 

January = Jan. February = Feb. March = Mar. April = Apr. May = May June = June July = July August = Aug. September = Sept. October = Oct. November = Nov. December = Dec.

Spell out months fully in the body of your paper. 

Note : For your Works Cited list, all citations should be double-spaced and have a hanging indent.

A "hanging indent" means that each subsequent line after the first line of your citation should be indented by 0.5 inches.

Author's Last Name, First Name. Review of  Title of Book: Subtitle if Any , by Book Author's First Name Last Name.  Name of Journal , vol. Volume Number, no. Issue Number, Date of Publication, pp. First Page Number-Last Page Number.  Name of Database . doi: DOI Number if Given.

 Note : If the book review is from a source other than an article in the library's database, view the appropriate section in the MLA guide to determine how to cite the source after the name of the book's author.

Learn more: See the  MLA Handbook , pp. 28-29

Author's Last Name, First Name. "Title of Review." Name of Journal , vol. Volume Number, no. Issue Number, Date of Publication, pp. First Page Number-Last Page Number.  Name of Database . doi: DOI Number if Given.

 Note : If the book review is from a source other than an article in the library's database, view the appropriate section on the MLA guide to determine how to cite the source.

Author's Last Name, First Name. "Title of Review." Review of  Title of Book: Subtitle if Any,  by Book Author's First Name Last Name .   Name of Journal , vol. Volume Number, no. Issue Number, Date of Publication, pp. First Page Number-Last Page Number. Name of Database . doi: DOI Number if Given. 

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MLA Citation Guide: Book Reviews

• Advertisements
• Books, eBooks & Pamphlets
• Book Reviews
• Class Notes & Presentations
• Encyclopedias & Dictionaries
• Government Documents
• Images, Artwork, Charts, Graphs & Tables
• Interviews and Emails (Personal Communications)
• Journal Articles
• Magazine Articles
• Newspaper Articles
• Primary Sources
• Religious Texts
• Social Media
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• When Creating Digital Assignments
• When Information Is Missing
• Works Quoted in Another Source
• In-Text Citation
• Works Cited List
• Annotated Bibliography
• How Did We Do?

Abbreviating Months

In your works cited list, abbreviate months as follows: 

January = Jan. February = Feb. March = Mar. April = Apr. May = May June = June July = July August = Aug. September = Sept. October = Oct. November = Nov. December = Dec.

Spell out months fully in the body of your paper. 

Note : For your Works Cited list, all citations should be double spaced and have a hanging indent.

A "hanging indent" means that each subsequent line after the first line of your citation should be indented by 0.5 inches.

Book Review - No Title

Author's Last Name, First Name. Review of  Title of Book: Subtitle if Any , by Book Author's First Name Last Name.  Name of Journal , vol. Volume Number, no. Issue Number, Date of Publication, pp. First Page Number-Last Page Number.  Name of Database . doi: DOI Number if Given.

 Note : If the book review is from a source other than an article in the library's database, view the appropriate section on the MLA guide to determine how to cite the source after the name of the book's author.

Learn more: See the  MLA Handbook , pp. 28-29

Book Review - Title Refers to Book being Reviewed

Author's Last Name, First Name. "Title of Review." Name of Journal , vol. Volume Number, no. Issue Number, Date of Publication, pp. First Page Number-Last Page Number.  Name of Database . doi: DOI Number if Given.

 Note : If the book review is from a source other than an article in the library's database, view the appropriate section on the MLA guide to determine how to cite the source.

Book Review - Title Doesn't Refer to Book being Reviewed

Author's Last Name, First Name. "Title of Review." Review of  Title of Book: Subtitle if Any,  by Book Author's First Name Last Name .   Name of Journal , vol. Volume Number, no. Issue Number, Date of Publication, pp. First Page Number-Last Page Number. Name of Database . doi: DOI Number if Given. 

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• MyExperience

MLA Citation Style, 9th Edition: Book Review

• In-Text References
• Works Cited
• One Author or Editor
• Multiple Authors or Editors
• Author and Editor
• Author and Translator
• Organization as Author
• Anonymous Work
• Chapter from an Edited Work
• Introduction, Preface, Foreword, or Afterword
• Multivolume Work
• Edition Other than the First
• Dictionary or Encyclopedia
• Journal Article
• Magazine Article
• Newspaper Article
• Book Review
• Basic Webpage
• Video Recording
• Sound Recording
• YouTube Video
• Interview or Personal Communication
• Lecture or Presentation
• Thesis or Dissertation
• Indirect Source
• Government Document
• AI Generated Content

Book Review - Examples

In-Text:       

(Powers 10)

Works Cited:

NOTE: If a review is untitled, include a title which incorporates the work that is being reviewed:

Help & Guide Contents

Home General Guidelines     In-Text Reference     Works Cited Books     One Author or Editor     Multiple Authors or Editors     Author and Editor     Author and Translator     Organization as Author     Anonymous Work     Chapter from an Edited Work     Introduction, Preface, Foreword, or Afterword     Multivolume Work     Edition Other than the First     Dictionary or Encyclopedia     E-Book Articles     Journal Article     Magazine Article     Newspaper Article     Book Review Websites     Basic Webpage     Blog Post     Tweet Audiovisual Media     Video Recording     Sound Recording     YouTube Video Other Sources     Interview or Personal Communication     Lecture or Presentation     Thesis or Dissertation     Scripture     Indirect Source     Government Document Plagiarism

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Works-Cited-List Entries

How to cite a book.

To create a basic works-cited-list entry for a book, list the author, the title, the publisher, and the publication date. You may need to include other elements depending on the type of book you are citing (e.g., an edited book, a translation) and how it is published (e.g., in print, as an e-book, online). Below are sample entries for books along with links to posts containing many other examples.

Book by One Author

Mantel, Hilary. Wolf Hall . Picador, 2010.

Book by an Unknown Author

Beowulf . Translated by Alan Sullivan and Timothy Murphy, edited by Sarah Anderson, Pearson, 2004.

An Edited Book

Sánchez Prado, Ignacio M., editor. Mexican Literature in Theory . Bloomsbury, 2018.

More Examples

Anthologies

Books Series

Edited Collections

Multivolume Works

Translations

• Next Example

MLA Citation Examples

• Volume and Issue Numbers
• Page Numbers
• Citing a Source within a Source
• DOIs and URLs
• In-Text Citations
• Academic Journals
• Encyclopedia Articles
• Book, Film, and Product Reviews

Review without a specific title

Review with a title.

• Online Classroom Materials
• Conference Papers
• Technical and Research Reports
• Dissertations and Theses
• Interviews and E-mail Messages
• AI: ChatGPT, etc.
• Review of Title of Work , by Author.
• Title of Journal ,
• Volume number, issue number,
• Publication Date,
• Page number(s).
• Title of Database ,
• DOI or URL.

Reviewer. Review of Title of Work , by Author. Title of Journal , vol. #, no. #, date, pp. #-#. Title of Database , DOI or URL.

Conn, David R. Review of The World as We Knew It: Dispatches from a Changing Climate , by Amy Brady and Tajja Isen. Library Journal , vol. 147, no. 4, Apr. 2022, p. 104. EBSCOhost , ezproxy.umgc.edu/login?url=https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ehh&AN=155859448&site=eds-live&scope=site.

• "Title of Review."

Reviewer. "Title of Review." Review of Title of Work , by Author. Title of Journal , vol. #, no. #, date, pp. ##-##. Title of Database , DOI or URL.

Grimes, William. "Beyond Mandalay, the Road to Isolation and Xenophobia." Review of The River of Lost Footsteps: Histories of Burma , by Thant Myint-U. New York Times , 13 Dec. 2006, pp. E8+. ProQuest , ezproxy.umgc.edu/login?url=https://www.proquest.com/docview/433471566?accountid=14580.

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Thursday, February 23: The Clark Library is closed today.

MLA Style (9th Edition) Citation Guide: Books & Ebooks

• Introduction to MLA Style
• Journal Articles
• Magazine/Newspaper Articles
• Books & Ebooks
• Government & Legal Documents
• Biblical Sources
• Secondary Sources
• Videos/DVDs/TV Shows
• How to Cite: Other
• 9th Edition Updates
• Additional Help

Table of Contents

Book in print, book with editor(s) but no author, translated book, chapters, short stories, essays, or articles from a book (anthology or collection), an introduction, preface, foreword, or afterword, article in a reference book (e.g. encyclopedias, dictionaries).

Note: For your Works Cited list, all citations should be double spaced and have a hanging indent.

A "hanging indent" means that each subsequent line after the first line of your citation should be indented by 0.5 inches.

Authors/Editors

An author can be a person but can also be an organization, or company. These are called group or corporate authors.

If you are citing a chapter from a book that has an editor, the author of the chapter is listed first, and is the name listed in the in-text citation.

Capitalize the first letter of every important word in the title. You do not need to capitalize words such as: in, of, or an.

If there is a colon (:) in the title, include what comes after the colon (also known as the subtitle).

You have the option to use the shortened name of the publisher by abbreviating "University" and "Press" (e.g. Oxford UP, not Oxford University Press).

You also have the option to remove articles (A, An, The), business abbreviations (e.g. Co., Inc.) and descriptive words (e.g. Books, House, Press, Publishers).

The format of all dates is: Date Month (shortened) Year. e.g. 5 Sept. 2012.

Whether to give the year alone or include a month and day depends on your source: write the full date as you find it there.

If no date is listed, omit it unless you can find that information available in a reliable source. In that case the date is cited in square brackets. e.g. [2008]

Page Numbers

Page number on your Works Cited page (but not for in-text citations) are now proceeded by p. for a single page number and pp. for a range of page numbers. E.g. p. 156 or pp. 79-92.

Access Date

Date of access is optional in MLA 8th/9th edition; it is recommended for pages that may change frequently or that do not have a copyright/publication date.

Last Name, First Name.  Title of Book . City of Publication, Publisher, Publication Date.

Note :  The city of publication should only be used if the book was published before 1900, if the publisher has offices in more than one country, or if the publisher is unknown in North America.

Works Cited List Example:

Kurlansky, Mark. Salt: A World History . Walker, 2002.

In-Text Citation Example:

(Author's Last Name Page Number)

Example: (Kurlansky 10)

Two Authors

Last Name, First Name of First Author, and First Name Last Name of Second Author.  Title of Book: Subtitle if Any.  Edition if given and is not first edition, Publisher Name often shortened, Year of publication. 

Note: Only the first author listed appears in "Last Name, First Name" format. Authors' names are separated by a comma. Before the last author to be listed, add the word "and."

 Jacobson, Diane L., and Robert Kysar.  A Beginner's Guide to the Books of the Bible,  Augsburg, 1991.

 (Author's Last Name and Author's Last Name Page Number)

 Example: (Jacobson and Kysar 25)

Three or More Authors

Last Name, First Name of First Author, et al.  Title of Book: Subtitle if Any.  Edition if given and is not first edition, Publisher Name often shortened, Year of publication. 

Note:  If you have three or more authors list only the first author's name followed by et al. instead of listing all authors names. For example Smith, John, et al. The first author is the first name listed on the work you are citing, not the first name alphabetically.

Nickels, William, et al.  Understanding Business.  9th ed., McGraw-Hill Ryerson, 2016. 

(First Author's Last Name et al. Page Number)

Example: (Nickels et al. 5)

eBook from a Library Database

Last Name, First Name of First Author, et al.  Title of Book: Subtitle if Any.  Edition if given and is not first edition, Publisher Name often shortened, Year of publication.  Name of eBook Database,  doi:DOI number/URL/Permalink.

Calhoun, Craig. Sociology in America: A History . U of Chicago P, 2008.  ProQuest Ebook Central , ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/up/detail.action?docID=408466&pq-origsite=primo.  

 (Author's Last Name Page Number)

 Example: (Calhoun 53)

eBook for Kindle or other eBook Reader

Note:  The MLA uses the term "eBook" to refer to publications formatted specifically for reading with an eBook reader device (e.g., a Kindle) or a corresponding web application, which will not have URLs or DOIs. Citations will be very similar to physical book citations; just add the word "eBook" in the "version" slot of the MLA template (i.e., after the author, the title of the source, the title of the container, and the names of any other contributors).

Silva, Paul J.  How to Write a Lot: A Practical Guide to Productive Academic Writing , eBook, American Psychological Association, 2007.

 Example: (Silva 30)

Note : When no page numbers are listed on an eBook, cite the chapter number instead in your in-text citation. Example: (Smith ch. 2).  

Last Name of editor, First Name, editor(s).  Title of Book: Subtitle if Any.  Edition if given and is not first edition, Publisher Name often shortened, Year of Publication.

 Wolfteich, Claire E., editor. Invitation to Practical Theology: Catholic Voices and Visions . Paulist, 2014. 

 (Last name page number)

 Example: (Wolfteich 103)

Electronic Materials

(More than one editor)

Kidwell, Jeremy, and Sean Doherty, editors. Theology and Economics: A Christian Vision of the Common Good.  eBook, Palgrave Macmillan, 2015. 

(Last name page number)

Example: (Kidwell and Doherty 103)

If you want to emphasize the work rather than the translator, cite as you would any other book. Add “translated by” and follow with the name(s) of the translator(s).

Boitani, Piero. The Bible and Its Rewritings . Translated by Anita Weston, Oxford UP, 1999.

Example: (Boitani 89)

Augustine. The Confessions of St. Augustine . Translated by Edward Bouverie Pusey, eBook, Floating Press, 1921.

Example: (Augustine 65) 

Author's Last Name, First Name. "Title of Short Story, Essay, or Article."  Title of Book: Subtitle if Any,  edited by Editor's First Name and Last Name, Edition if given and is not first, Publisher Name often shortened, Year of publication, Page numbers of the essay, article, or short story. 

Boys, Mary C. “Learning in the Presence of the Other: Feminisms and the Interreligious Encounter.” Faith and Feminism: Ecumenical Essays , edited by Diane B. Lipsett, Westminster John Knox Press, 2014, pp. 103-114.

Note:  The first author's name listed is the author of the chapter/essay/short story.

Note: If there is no editor given you may leave out that part of the citation.

Example: (Boys 110)

When citing an introduction, a preface, a foreword, or an afterword, write the name of the author(s) of the piece you are citing. Then give the name of the part being cited, which should not be italicized or enclosed in quotation marks; in italics, provide the name of the work and the name of the author of the introduction/preface/foreword/afterword. Finish the citation with the details of publication and page range.

Farrell, Thomas B. Introduction.  Norms of Rhetorical Culture , by Farrell, Yale UP, 1993, pp. 1-13.

(Farrell 5)

If the writer of the piece is different from the author of the complete work, then write the full name of the principal work's author after the word "By." For example, if you were to cite Hugh Dalziel Duncan’s introduction of Kenneth Burke’s book Permanence and Change, you would write the entry as follows:

Duncan, Hugh Dalziel. Introduction.  Permanence and Change: An Anatomy of Purpose,  by Kenneth Burke, 1935, 3rd ed., U of California P, 1984, pp. xiii-xliv.

(Duncan xiv)

For entries in encyclopedias, dictionaries, and other reference works, cite the entry name as you would any other work in a collection but do not include the publisher information. Also, if the reference book is organized alphabetically, as most are, do not list the volume or the page number of the article or item.

"Ideology."  The American Heritage Dictionary , 3rd ed., Dell, 1997, p. 369.

("Ideology" 369)

Online Reference book

Isaacson, Joel. "Monet, Claude." Grove Art Online , Oxford Art Online , www.oxfordartonline.com/subscriber/article/grove/art/T059077.

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Cite a Book in MLA

Don't let plagiarism errors spoil your paper

Citing books in mla.

How do you cite a book? What information do you need to include and where does it go? Citation Machine citing tools can help you easily create formatted citations for your research paper.

First, find your book using the search box above. The book’s author, title, or ISBN will work. If there are books with similar titles, authors, different editions, etc., you will be shown all possibilities, so you can choose the correct book. From there, the citing tools will automatically pull information on the source and help you create a citation.

Books aren’t just in print. They can be electronic, too. You can find them in online databases, websites, audiobooks, and other forms of media. Citation Machine citing tools can handle those, as well.

Standard book citation:

Collins, Suzanne. The Hunger Games. Scholastic, 2008.

Translated works in MLA format:

If the focus was on the text, rather than the actual translation, cite the source like this:

Vila-Matas, Enrique. Never Any End to Paris. Translated by Anne McLean, New Directions, 2011.

If the focus was on the translation, include the translator’s name first in the citation.

McLean, Anne, translator. Never Any End to Paris. By Enrique Vila-Matas, New Directions, 2011.

Wish you had an automatic MLA citation generator to do all of the heavy lifting for you? Try out our generator, at the top of this page.

How to cite a textbook in print:

To cite a full textbook in print in MLA format, you’ll need to find the following pieces of information:

• Name of the author(s) or editor(s)
• Title of the textbook, including any subtitles
• Version of the textbook (such as a numbered edition or revised edition)
• Name of the publisher
• Year the textbook was published

Place the pieces of information in this format:

Last name, First name of the author or Last name, First name, editor. Title of the Textbook. Version, Publisher, Year published.

If the textbook was compiled by an editor, use this format at the beginning of the citation:

Last name, First name, editor.

Examples of how to cite a textbook in print:

Lilly, Leonard S. Braunwald’s Heart Disease: Review and Assessment . 9th ed., Elsevier Saunders, 2012.

Cherny, Nathan, et al., editors. Oxford Textbook of Palliative Medicine . 5th ed., Oxford UP, 2015.

E-books in MLA format:

Citing an e-book (a digital book that lacks a URL and that you use software to read on a personal e-reader):

Alcott, Louisa May. Little Women. E-book ed., Barnes & Noble Classics, 2004.

In the “version” section of the citation, include “E-book ed.” to specify that you used an e-book version of a printed book.

You can also use the “final supplemental” section of the citation to specify the file type of the electronic edition of the work if you know the work varies by file format.

Alcott, Louisa May. Little Women. E-book ed., Barnes & Noble Classics, 2004. EPUB.

If you’re citing a book available from a website, here’s an example in MLA format:

Doyle, Arthur Conan. “A Scandal in Bohemia.” The Complete Sherlock Holmes, Internet Archive, archive.org/details/deysayan844_gmail_Cano/mode/2up?ref=ol&view=theater&q=119.

The website is the container, which is found in the third position of the citation, in italics.

Wish you had a second set of eyes to review your citations? Use our MLA citation generator and compare the output to yours.

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MLA Works Cited Page: Format, Template & Examples

The Works Cited page is a part of research papers written in the Modern Language Association (MLA) format where all sources used by the author are listed. While writing research papers, authors may consult several sources and use their data or paraphrase parts of the original text. It is essential to give due credit to the used sources and cite them appropriately to avoid plagiarism. This list of sources offers an easy reference for readers who may want to refer to the original source for their own research.  

A well-formatted and accurate Works Cited page can provide readers with specific details to help them access that source. For example, for a journal article, in addition to basic details like author name, title, journal name, etc., the MLA Works Cited page also provides the volume and issue numbers, page numbers, publisher, etc. A Works Cited page gives credibility to the research paper, proving that the information published is accurate and backed by evidence. 

This article describes the template of an MLA Works Cited page along with examples and suggests steps to ensure accurate formatting of all entries. 

Table of Contents

• What is a Works Cited Page? 
• Basic Rules for an MLA Works Cited Page 
• Online journal article with DOI or URL 
• Online newspaper article 
• E-book 
• Specific type of e-book (Kindle, Nook) 
• Print book 
• Chapter in edited book 
• Web page with an author 
• Web page with no author 
• Web page with no author or organization 
• Blog post 
• Video 
• YouTube video 
• Image 
• Conference paper presentation 
• Dissertation from a database 
• Twitter (now X) posts 
• Format of an MLA Works Cited Page 
• Formatting Headings and Citation Titles on an MLA Works Cited Page 
• Single author 
• Two authors 
• Three or more authors 
• General rules 
• Key Takeaways 
• Frequently Asked Questions 

What is a Works Cited Page?

The MLA Works Cited page 1 lists all the sources used while writing research papers. This page is always the last one after the main content. A Works Cited page uses the official MLA format and has similar content as reference lists used by other styles such as the Chicago Manual of Style (Chicago style), the American Psychological Association (APA), and the American Medical Association (AMA). Each style uses a different format, emphasizing different elements. 

The Works Cited page helps avoid plagiarism by crediting the sources and allows readers to quickly locate the sources. Papers in MLA format should always have a Works Cited page and each entry on this page should be cited in the text at the corresponding location. 

Basic Rules for an MLA Works Cited Page

Here are some basic rules for writing the MLA Works Cited page: 2  

• Start your Works Cited list on a fresh page at the end of your paper, with the same formatting as other sections, such as one-inch margins, last name, page number, and header. 
• Align the title, “Works Cited,” at the top center. Don’t use italicization, boldfacing, quotation marks, or all-caps to highlight the title. 
• Left align the citations and arrange them alphabetically by authors’ last names. If author names are unavailable, arrange by the first letter in the title (other than A, An, or The). 
• Do not use serial numbering or bullets to list the entries. 
• Double space all citations. 
• Indent the second and subsequent lines of citations by 0.5 inches to create a hanging indent (Figure 1). 

• List page numbers of the sources correctly. If only one page of a print source is used, use the abbreviation “p.” before the page number (e.g., p. 232). If a page range is used, use “pp.” (e.g., pp. 232-38). 
• For online sources, include a location, like a URL or a digital object identifier (DOI). Delete “http://” from URLs. The DOI or URL is usually the last element in a citation. 
• End all entries with a period. 

Citing Sources in MLA

A citation in an MLA Works Cited page requires the following core elements. These elements should be written in the order given below, followed by the punctuation mark shown unless the particular element is the final element of the entry, in which case, it should end with a period. 4,5  

• Author’s name
• Title of source
• Title of the container, (a container is the larger publication in which the text is published. For example, if citing an article from a journal, the journal is the container) 
• Other editors, translators, contributors
• Publication date
• Location (page numbers in print versions; DOI or URL in online versions) 

A few optional elements can be included, if available: 

• Date of access (the date you last accessed the online source) 
• Date of original publication 
• Format of media source 

All style guides have their own specific formats for writing different sources in a reference list—journal articles, printed and digital books, videos, websites, etc. The MLA-style format for different types of sources is listed below: 4

Online journal article with DOI or URL

Author’s last name, First name. “Title of Article.” Title of Journal , vol., no. (issue), date of publication, pp. (if available). Database Name , DOI or URL. 

Online newspaper article

Author’s last name, First name. “Title of Article.” Name of Newspaper , Publication Date, p. (if available), URL. Access date. 

Author’s last name, First name. Title of Book . E-book, publisher, publication year, DOI or URL (if available). 

Specific type of e-book (Kindle, Nook)

Author’s last name, First name. Title of Book , editor or translator (if necessary), (Kindle/Nook) ed., publisher, year. 

Author’s last name, First name. Title of Book . City*, Publisher, Publication Date. 

*City is cited only if the book is published before 1900 or if the publisher has multiple offices worldwide. 

Chapter in edited book

Author’s last name, First name. Title of Book . Edited by FirstName LastName, publisher, year, page range of chapter. 

Web page with an author

Author’s last name, First name. “Title of Webpage.” Title of Website , URL. Access date. 

Web page with no author

“Title of Article.” Title of Website , date of publication, URL. Access date. 

Web page with no author or organization

“Title of Webpage.” Title of Website (if different), publication year, URL. Access date. 

Author’s last name, First Name (or, in some cases, screen name, editor, etc.). “Title of Post.” Name of Website , version or date of post, name of organization (if different), URL. Access date. 

Title of Motion Picture/Film . Directed by First Name Last Name, performances by First Name Last Name, Studio Name, Year. Access date, Media format. 

Last Name, First Name, director/writer/producer. Title of Motion Picture/Film . Studio, Year. Access date, Media format. 

YouTube video

If author is different from the uploader: 

Author Last Name, First Name. “Title of Video.” YouTube , uploaded by [Screen name], date, URL. Access date, Media format. 

If author and uploader are the same OR if there is no clear author: 

“Title of Video.” YouTube , uploaded by [Screen name], date, URL. Access date, Media format. 

Artist’s Last Name, First Name. Title of Image , date of creation, institution, city. Name of web site , URL. 

Title of Piece . Date of creation. Name of Website , URL. 

Conference paper presentation

Author’s Last Name, First Name. “Conference Paper Title.” Conference Title that Includes Date and Location , edited by Conference Editor(s). Publisher. Date of Publication. 

Dissertation from a database

Author’s Last Name, First Name. Title of Dissertation (Doctoral dissertation) . Database name, date of publication, URL (if available). 

Twitter (now X) posts

Twitter Handle (First Name Last Name if Known). “The entire tweet word-for-word.”  Twitter , Day Month Year of Tweet, Time of Tweet, URL. 

Format of an MLA Works Cited Page

Here’s a list of steps for formatting the MLA Works Cited page:

• Place one-inch margins around the entire document except for the “running head.” In the page setup settings, you can view and modify the margin size. 
• Double space the entire page using the “Line spacing” or “Paragraph spacing” options in your word processing program. 
• Organize the Works Cited entries in either alphabetical (by author name or title) or non-alphabetical order. 1,2

Example: 

Benjamin, Chloe. The Immortalists . Penguin, 2018. 

Black Panther . Directed by Ryan Coogler, performance by Chadwick Boseman, Marvel Studios, 2018. 

Egan, Jennifer. Manhattan Beach . Scribner, 2017. 

Formatting Headings and Citation Titles on an MLA Works Cited Page

The following points outline the basic format for headings and titles used on a Works Cited page. 1 The running head is at the top right corner of every page of the document. It displays the last name of the author and the page number (e.g., Letterman 6). 

• The running head should be placed half an inch from the top of the page and along the right side’s one-inch margin. 
• The page title (Work/Works Cited) should be written below the running head.  
• No center alignment 
• No boldfacing, italicization, or underlining 
• Same font size (12 point) and type as the entire document 
• Separated by a double space from the first citation on the page 

Consider the following rules while formatting source titles: 1,5,7,8  

• List the full title as the original source and use title case (capitalize all principal words, except articles [a, an, the], prepositions, or coordinating conjunctions [and, for, but, or, so, nor, yet] when in the middle of the title). 

Examples:  

The Code of the Exiled, Wizard of Oz, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire  

Cheyfitz, Eric. The Poetics of Imperialism: Translation and Colonization from The Tempest to Tarzan. Expanded ed., U of Pennsylvania P, 1997. 

• Separate the subtitle from the title with a colon and space. 

Goldman, Anne. “Questions of Transport: Reading Primo Levi Reading Dante.” The Georgia Review , vol. 64, no. 1, 2010, pp. 69-88. 

• Italicize titles if the source is self-contained and independent, e.g., titles of books, plays, films, periodicals, journals, magazines, databases, and websites. 

Example: Salinger, J. D. The Catcher in the Rye . Little Brown, 1991. 

• Enclose titles in quotation marks if the source is part of a larger work, e.g., articles, essays, chapters, poems, short stories, webpages, songs, television episodes, and speeches. 
• Titles beginning with numbers are placed in the reference list as if the title was written out alphabetically. 

Formatting Author Names on an MLA Work Cited Page

Few important rules to consider when formatting author names: 1,2  

Single author

• List author names alphabetically by the author’s last name (or, for entire edited collections, editor names). The format for writing author names is as follows: 

Last name, first name, middle name or middle initial  

Said, Edward W. Culture and Imperialism . Knopf, 1994. 

• To cite more than one work by the same author, order the entries alphabetically by title, and use three hyphens in place of the author’s name for every entry after the first. 

Alcott, Louisa May. “Eight Cousins.” Project Gutenberg , 2018, www.gutenberg.org/files/2726/2726-h/2726-h.htm . 

—. Little Women . Bantam Classics, 1983. 

—. Rose in Bloom . CreateSpace, 2018. 

Two authors

The first listed author’s name on the source is the first author in the reference.  

Last name, First name of author 1, and First name Last name of author 2 

Pavear, Richard, and Larissa Volokhonsky, translators. Crime and Punishment . By Feodor Dostoevsky, Vintage eBooks, 1993. 

Three or more authors

Include only the first listed author’s last name, followed by a comma and their first name, followed by another comma and then “et al.”  

Example:  

Baron, Sabrina Alcorn, et al., editors. Agent of Change: Print Culture Studies after Elizabeth L. Eisenstein. U of Massachusetts P / Center for the Book, Library of Congress, 2007. 

General rules

• Do not list titles (Dr., Sir, etc.) or degrees (PhD, MA, MD, etc.) with names but include suffixes like “Jr.” or “II.”  

King, Martin Luther, Jr. 

• Alphabetize works with no known author by their title; use a shortened version of the title in the parenthetical citations in your paper. 

Baudrillard, Jean. Simulacra and Simulations . […] 

Boring Postcards USA […] 

• To cite works by authors using a pseudonym or stage-name, cite the better-known name if the person is well known. For example, Lewis Carroll is the pseudonym of Charles Dodgson, and is the better-known name so only the pseudonym should be used. If the pseudonym is less well known, cite the real name in square brackets after the pseudonym.  

Van Dyne, Edith [L. Frank Baum]. Aunt Jane’s Nieces At Work . 1st World Library, 2006. 

Key Takeaways

To summarize, an MLA Works Cited page should have the following format: 

• Starts on a new page at the end. 
• Centered page title without any highlights. 
• Double-spaced citations, preferably in Times New Roman 12-pt font. 
• Left-justified entries with a hanging indent of 0.5 inches. 
• Source titles in title case. 
• Entries ordered by the first word, typically author name or the first word in the title (except articles a, an, the). If the title begins with a year or a number, alphabetize it as if the number/year is spelled out. 

Frequently Asked Questions

A1. The Works Cited page and references have a similar purpose; both include sources that have been specifically cited or paraphrased in the paper and whose data have been directly used. A bibliography includes a list of sources related to the content in a research paper, that is, sources that you may have consulted while writing your research paper, but may not have actually used, cited, or paraphrased from. 1   

A2. Yes, there are a few other styles for citing references, such as the Chicago Style, AMA Manual of Style, APA Manual of Style, and the IEEE style. All of these have different referencing formats. In addition, organizations may create their own referencing styles, commonly called a house style. 

A3. No, the Works Cited page should include only those sources that you have cited or whose data you have used in your research paper. Sources that you have only consulted while conducting research should be included in a bibliography. 

A4. Per MLA format, ignore symbols, such as hashtags when alphabetizing. Use the first letter in the entry to alphabetize. 9   Example:  @AP. “It’s been four years since the #MeToo movement took over social media. . . .” X, 15 Oct. 2021, https://twitter.com/AP/status/1449019990741590025.  “#MeToo Poll: Many in US More Willing to Call Out Misconduct.” Associated Press , 15 Oct. 2021, https://apnews.com/article/sexual-misconduct-metoo-79688da3a0c3519d2a76b5b6e6b23ba7.  “#MeToo Protest in Amsterdam after Allegations at TV Show.” Associated Press , 29 Jan. 2022, https://apnews.com/article/entertainment-business-arts-and-entertainment-netherlands-amsterdam-4bb589aae061e534b1a47ac453e9d85f . 

A5. Here is one way of adding a hanging indent in MS Word: 10   1. Highlight the text that you want to format.   2. Click the Home tab at the top of the page; in the “Paragraph” section click the small arrow in the lower-right corner to open a window with different paragraph setting options.   3. In that settings window, look for a section, “Indentation,” which has an option, “Special.” Click the drop-down menu beneath Special and select Hanging.   4. MS Word will mostly have the default spacing of the hanging indent set to 0.5 inches. To adjust the spacing, change the number in the By section.  5. Click OK to save and apply the hanging indent to your highlighted text. 

To summarize, an MLA Works Cited page is an essential part of a manuscript written using the MLA style and includes all sources used by the author to write the research paper. As described in the article, the Works Cited page and its entries have a specific format that should be strictly followed, and all the core elements included in the individual entries.  

We hope this article has provided a deeper understanding of the MLA style and will help you apply this format to all your Works Cited pages. 

References  

• What is a works cited page? EasyBib website. Accessed May 14, 2024. https://www.easybib.com/guides/citation-guides/mla-format/how-to-format-a-mla-works-cited-list/  
• MLA Works Cited page: Basic format. Purdue Online Writing Lab. Accessed May 14, 2024. https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/mla_style/mla_formatting_and_style_guide/mla_works_cited_page_basic_format.html  
• MLA Citation: Works Cited Example. Press Books @ MSL website. Accessed May 16, 2024. https://pressbooks.ulib.csuohio.edu/csu-fyw-rhetoric/chapter/12-4-mla-works-cited-examples/  
• MLA Works Cited Page. The University of Arizona Global Campus Writing Center. Accessed May 17, 2024. https://writingcenter.uagc.edu/mla-works-cited-page  
• Section 5. List of Works Cited. MLA Handbook eighth edition. 
• Sample MLA Works Cited Page. College of San Mateo library website. Accessed May 17, 2024. https://www.collegeofsanmateo.edu/library/docs/MLAWorksCited7.pdf  
• MLA Style Guide, 8 th & 9 th Editions: Title of Source. Accessed May 18, 2024. https://irsc.libguides.com/c.php?g=483085&p=3303403#:~:text=Italicize%20titles%20if%20the%20source,are%20placed%20in%20quotation%20marks . 
• Frequently Asked Questions about Citing Sources in MLA Format. Harvard Guide to Using Sources. Accessed May 20, 2024. https://usingsources.fas.harvard.edu/frequently-asked-questions-about-citing-sources-mla-format  
• How do I alphabetize a works-cited-list entry that begins with a hashtag or another symbol? MLA Style Center. Accessed May 21, 2024. https://style.mla.org/alphabetizing-hashtags-and-other-symbols/  
• Hanging Indents and Microsoft Word. MLA Style Center. Accessed May 21, 2024. https://style.mla.org/hanging-indents/  

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Home / Guides / Citation Guides / How to Cite Sources

How to Cite Sources

Here is a complete list for how to cite sources. Most of these guides present citation guidance and examples in MLA, APA, and Chicago.

If you’re looking for general information on MLA or APA citations , the EasyBib Writing Center was designed for you! It has articles on what’s needed in an MLA in-text citation , how to format an APA paper, what an MLA annotated bibliography is, making an MLA works cited page, and much more!

MLA Format Citation Examples

The Modern Language Association created the MLA Style, currently in its 9th edition, to provide researchers with guidelines for writing and documenting scholarly borrowings.  Most often used in the humanities, MLA style (or MLA format ) has been adopted and used by numerous other disciplines, in multiple parts of the world.

MLA provides standard rules to follow so that most research papers are formatted in a similar manner. This makes it easier for readers to comprehend the information. The MLA in-text citation guidelines, MLA works cited standards, and MLA annotated bibliography instructions provide scholars with the information they need to properly cite sources in their research papers, articles, and assignments.

• Book Chapter
• Conference Paper
• Documentary
• Encyclopedia
• Google Images
• Kindle Book
• Memorial Inscription
• Museum Exhibit
• Painting or Artwork
• PowerPoint Presentation
• Sheet Music
• Thesis or Dissertation
• YouTube Video

APA Format Citation Examples

The American Psychological Association created the APA citation style in 1929 as a way to help psychologists, anthropologists, and even business managers establish one common way to cite sources and present content.

APA is used when citing sources for academic articles such as journals, and is intended to help readers better comprehend content, and to avoid language bias wherever possible. The APA style (or APA format ) is now in its 7th edition, and provides citation style guides for virtually any type of resource.

Chicago Style Citation Examples

The Chicago/Turabian style of citing sources is generally used when citing sources for humanities papers, and is best known for its requirement that writers place bibliographic citations at the bottom of a page (in Chicago-format footnotes ) or at the end of a paper (endnotes).

The Turabian and Chicago citation styles are almost identical, but the Turabian style is geared towards student published papers such as theses and dissertations, while the Chicago style provides guidelines for all types of publications. This is why you’ll commonly see Chicago style and Turabian style presented together. The Chicago Manual of Style is currently in its 17th edition, and Turabian’s A Manual for Writers of Research Papers, Theses, and Dissertations is in its 8th edition.

Citing Specific Sources or Events

• Declaration of Independence
• Gettysburg Address
• Martin Luther King Jr. Speech
• President Obama’s Farewell Address
• President Trump’s Inauguration Speech
• White House Press Briefing

Additional FAQs

• Citing Archived Contributors
• Citing a Blog
• Citing a Book Chapter
• Citing a Source in a Foreign Language
• Citing an Image
• Citing a Song
• Citing Special Contributors
• Citing a Translated Article
• Citing a Tweet

6 Interesting Citation Facts

The world of citations may seem cut and dry, but there’s more to them than just specific capitalization rules, MLA in-text citations , and other formatting specifications. Citations have been helping researches document their sources for hundreds of years, and are a great way to learn more about a particular subject area.

Ever wonder what sets all the different styles apart, or how they came to be in the first place? Read on for some interesting facts about citations!

1. There are Over 7,000 Different Citation Styles

You may be familiar with MLA and APA citation styles, but there are actually thousands of citation styles used for all different academic disciplines all across the world. Deciding which one to use can be difficult, so be sure to ask you instructor which one you should be using for your next paper.

2. Some Citation Styles are Named After People

While a majority of citation styles are named for the specific organizations that publish them (i.e. APA is published by the American Psychological Association, and MLA format is named for the Modern Language Association), some are actually named after individuals. The most well-known example of this is perhaps Turabian style, named for Kate L. Turabian, an American educator and writer. She developed this style as a condensed version of the Chicago Manual of Style in order to present a more concise set of rules to students.

3. There are Some Really Specific and Uniquely Named Citation Styles

How specific can citation styles get? The answer is very. For example, the “Flavour and Fragrance Journal” style is based on a bimonthly, peer-reviewed scientific journal published since 1985 by John Wiley & Sons. It publishes original research articles, reviews and special reports on all aspects of flavor and fragrance. Another example is “Nordic Pulp and Paper Research,” a style used by an international scientific magazine covering science and technology for the areas of wood or bio-mass constituents.

4. More citations were created on  EasyBib.com  in the first quarter of 2018 than there are people in California.

The US Census Bureau estimates that approximately 39.5 million people live in the state of California. Meanwhile, about 43 million citations were made on EasyBib from January to March of 2018. That’s a lot of citations.

5. “Citations” is a Word With a Long History

The word “citations” can be traced back literally thousands of years to the Latin word “citare” meaning “to summon, urge, call; put in sudden motion, call forward; rouse, excite.” The word then took on its more modern meaning and relevance to writing papers in the 1600s, where it became known as the “act of citing or quoting a passage from a book, etc.”

6. Citation Styles are Always Changing

The concept of citations always stays the same. It is a means of preventing plagiarism and demonstrating where you relied on outside sources. The specific style rules, however, can and do change regularly. For example, in 2018 alone, 46 new citation styles were introduced , and 106 updates were made to exiting styles. At EasyBib, we are always on the lookout for ways to improve our styles and opportunities to add new ones to our list.

Why Citations Matter

Here are the ways accurate citations can help your students achieve academic success, and how you can answer the dreaded question, “why should I cite my sources?”

They Give Credit to the Right People

Citing their sources makes sure that the reader can differentiate the student’s original thoughts from those of other researchers. Not only does this make sure that the sources they use receive proper credit for their work, it ensures that the student receives deserved recognition for their unique contributions to the topic. Whether the student is citing in MLA format , APA format , or any other style, citations serve as a natural way to place a student’s work in the broader context of the subject area, and serve as an easy way to gauge their commitment to the project.

They Provide Hard Evidence of Ideas

Having many citations from a wide variety of sources related to their idea means that the student is working on a well-researched and respected subject. Citing sources that back up their claim creates room for fact-checking and further research . And, if they can cite a few sources that have the converse opinion or idea, and then demonstrate to the reader why they believe that that viewpoint is wrong by again citing credible sources, the student is well on their way to winning over the reader and cementing their point of view.

They Promote Originality and Prevent Plagiarism

The point of research projects is not to regurgitate information that can already be found elsewhere. We have Google for that! What the student’s project should aim to do is promote an original idea or a spin on an existing idea, and use reliable sources to promote that idea. Copying or directly referencing a source without proper citation can lead to not only a poor grade, but accusations of academic dishonesty. By citing their sources regularly and accurately, students can easily avoid the trap of plagiarism , and promote further research on their topic.

They Create Better Researchers

By researching sources to back up and promote their ideas, students are becoming better researchers without even knowing it! Each time a new source is read or researched, the student is becoming more engaged with the project and is developing a deeper understanding of the subject area. Proper citations demonstrate a breadth of the student’s reading and dedication to the project itself. By creating citations, students are compelled to make connections between their sources and discern research patterns. Each time they complete this process, they are helping themselves become better researchers and writers overall.

When is the Right Time to Start Making Citations?

Make in-text/parenthetical citations as you need them.

As you are writing your paper, be sure to include references within the text that correspond with references in a works cited or bibliography. These are usually called in-text citations or parenthetical citations in MLA and APA formats. The most effective time to complete these is directly after you have made your reference to another source. For instance, after writing the line from Charles Dickens’ A Tale of Two Cities : “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times…,” you would include a citation like this (depending on your chosen citation style):

(Dickens 11).

This signals to the reader that you have referenced an outside source. What’s great about this system is that the in-text citations serve as a natural list for all of the citations you have made in your paper, which will make completing the works cited page a whole lot easier. After you are done writing, all that will be left for you to do is scan your paper for these references, and then build a works cited page that includes a citation for each one.

Need help creating an MLA works cited page ? Try the MLA format generator on EasyBib.com! We also have a guide on how to format an APA reference page .

2. Understand the General Formatting Rules of Your Citation Style Before You Start Writing

While reading up on paper formatting may not sound exciting, being aware of how your paper should look early on in the paper writing process is super important. Citation styles can dictate more than just the appearance of the citations themselves, but rather can impact the layout of your paper as a whole, with specific guidelines concerning margin width, title treatment, and even font size and spacing. Knowing how to organize your paper before you start writing will ensure that you do not receive a low grade for something as trivial as forgetting a hanging indent.

Don’t know where to start? Here’s a formatting guide on APA format .

3. Double-check All of Your Outside Sources for Relevance and Trustworthiness First

Collecting outside sources that support your research and specific topic is a critical step in writing an effective paper. But before you run to the library and grab the first 20 books you can lay your hands on, keep in mind that selecting a source to include in your paper should not be taken lightly. Before you proceed with using it to backup your ideas, run a quick Internet search for it and see if other scholars in your field have written about it as well. Check to see if there are book reviews about it or peer accolades. If you spot something that seems off to you, you may want to consider leaving it out of your work. Doing this before your start making citations can save you a ton of time in the long run.

Finished with your paper? It may be time to run it through a grammar and plagiarism checker , like the one offered by EasyBib Plus. If you’re just looking to brush up on the basics, our grammar guides  are ready anytime you are.

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